I see your in Chicage but you might want to put your location in your profile so it will show up in the upper right corner of your posts. It will help folks later on when they're giving advice or wanting to stalk you. Just kiddin'.
Welcome to the forum. Lots of good gardeners that happen to be very good people here. Oh, and no stalkers...that I know of.
50's at night I figure you're getting into the 70's or higher during the days...? I think they could handle being outside permanently depending on whether they've been hardened off well. How many days have you been bringing them outside? I'd start leaving them out longer and longer over the next few days and then move them out permanently. Provided you're not expecting any more freezes or frosts.
I never trim pepper plants. I just let'em do what they want to do and they usually do a good job. I do recommend that you go ahead and prepare supports for the plants. A loaded bell pepper plant can easily get blown over when planted in the ground or either have a limb to break from the wind buffeting a heavy limb. Do you have some railing or something you might could tie them to for support? I use the tomato "ring cages"...the ones that are made of stiff wire, have three or four circles welded to three or four vertical legs. They don't do that well for large tomato plants but there great for pepper plants. But, I plant in the ground. You need to stabilize plant *and* pot. If you're not subject to much wind you may be "ok" with just a stake or something inside the pot. But, do think about what you will do to support the plants once they're loaded.
Which cultivar did you plant? I'm growing King Arthur hybrids.
Looks like you've done a good job starting them from seed and they're looking healthy. Yeah, their wanting get outside and start making you some peppers!! What size are your styrofoam cups? Do you have holds in the bottom of the cups? What type of light are you using? Just curious...I use styrofoam cups and Sterlite containers for starting seeds in, too. I usually will use the containers with the cups in them and drape a sheet of thin plastic (I normally use something thin like a dry-cleaning bag or a piece of one of the .50 cent "emergency ponchos". A piece of most any kind of thin plastic (Walmart bags, old dry cleaning bags, covers off of packs of toilet tissue, etc) draped over the top loosely makes a nice germination box.
Do you have holes in the bottom of your cups?
Bottom line, a few days of longer outside acclimation and with no freeze/frost in the future I'd say move'em outside.
Best wishes!
Ed
